Hello! Need some help with US tour dates logistics
 

Sorry if this is repetitive but I couldn't find the information I was looking for in any of threads. I am going to the Omaha and Kansas City shows next month and was curious if:

1) Is there an opening act? - I have gathered there is not

2) What time do they generally take the stage

3) How long have the shows lasted in general


Looking forward to a great show. If anyone has not been to Omaha, it arguably has among the best acoustics of any arena in the States. I would highly recommend making the trip if you are relatively close.

Peace!

No opening act for the arena shows. They have been hitting the stage between 8 and 8:15 p.m. Shows have been averaging 25 to 27 songs so about 2 1/2 hours. Have a great time.

Glad to hear the acoustics are good at Omaha. I got a rare front row ticket!!

Pia

Very cool Pia!!

When I wrote concert reviews, I made it a policy to cut the band some slack if I felt their performance was undermined by the acoustics. Whether it's the fault of the venue or the band's sound engineers, being the victim of a bad sound system is very much a living hell.

When it comes to Bon Jovi concerts, I use Dave as my yardstick: if I can hear what he's doing, they got it right. I've been so happy with the acoustics of the Tampa and Cleveland shows, I'm ready to nominate Bon Jovi's sound engineers for the Nobel prize!

Yeah actually for arena shows the sound people have got it right. They're really great.

But as far as mixing live shows and the live streams and such... man whoever does that needs his/her ass fired asap.

I would actually say the opposite. The only arena I saw Jovi was Lodon's O2 and I thought the sound was very underwhelming. I got used to it as the shows went by but the initial impression was that Jon sounded like chipmunk and Richie's sound during solos were all over the place. People here were bitching about the sound quality in Hyde Park, but the next day after Jovi I saw McCartney there and I thought the sound was awesome in comparison. Also, a year later when i was in London again, I went to see Iron Maiden in the same arena and I thought the sound wasn't very good either, so I guess it's the venue thing, which I find surprising, considering how it's now one of the most popular arenas in the world and it's still rather new, that they wouldn't figure the sound properly. I also saw Jovi in a stadium show in Vienna and I thought the sound was great. That's why I general prefer either big outdoor shows, or very small intimate 2,000 capatity arenas. Those 10,000-20,000 arenas I find the worst in terms of sound.

As far as their streams go, I would agree with you (it's beyond me how much they butchered the Lisbon show, where Jon was firing on all cylinders, yet Obie somehow made him sound so much worse than audience videos in YouTube), however, I thought the Cleveland stream sound quality (and mixing) was very solid for a live stream. David was too low in the end, but for most of the show, everything was fine.

Oh no the mix was absolutely terrible! I've been learning how to mix properly over the past 10 weeks and I almost feel like I could do a better job with the mix. Not trying to brag, but I feel like we've just gotten used to what Jon sounds like via live streams and the DVDs because it can be mixed so much better. There's a reason why being at the MSG shows in 2008 and the youtube videos from that show have almost better sound quality than the actual laid down mixes. It's because it's mixed quite well at the show, but as soon as it's strangled by Obie, it's so much worse. The only good sounding soundboard recording of the last 10 years is Hard Rock Calling 2011, because well - It was actually mixed well. Yes Jon sounded good, but he also sounded good because he was mixed well in. Obie seems to think Jon's voice needs to be on top of everything. Yeah that's sometimes true... but not in this case.

And what you'll find is that it's the acoustics that set the sound on or off, not the mix. Realistically, an indoor building should have the best sound acoustically, but most arenas aren't built with acoustics in mind as they're usually build for sporting events.

Thanks for your input.

This is true, if Jon's voice wasn't so prominent, it could hide some of the mistakes or the bad days like it does when you are actually there are hear the whole picture. Emphasise his voice in the good points, and give the man a bit of help in the difficult sections or the ones he struggles in. Obie does him no favours in the way he does things.